Cal Poly’s Tech Park Expansion and Cal Poly Pier Create Opportunities in Blue Economy Innovation on the Central Coast
Cal Poly’s on-campus Technology Park Expansion and Avila Beach-based Cal Poly Pier are poised to support upcoming high-tech marine initiatives on the Central Coast.
California’s goal of meeting 100% of its energy needs with carbon-free generation by 2045 has spurred significant interest and growth in offshore wind electricity generation along the coastline for up to seven gigawatts (GW) of supply. Offshore energy development is set to be a significant driver of jobs and economic growth in California including San Luis Obispo County, an area earmarked for offshore wind leases and significant investment in offshore electric generation.
Total United States investment in offshore wind is estimated to reach $17 billion by 2025. By 2030, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) estimates that 30 gigawatts of generation will have created more than 80,000 jobs nationwide. San Luis Obispo (SLO)-based economic development organization, REACH (Regional Economic Action Coalition), estimates that 3GW of offshore wind development in California would result in 1098 jobs statewide (617 in SLO County) and $396 million of economic output. 7GW of development would result in 2,488 jobs statewide (1,389 in SLO County) and $1.04 billion of output. The planned BOEM Morro Bay Wind Energy Area in San Luis Obispo County auction set for fall 2022 will catalyze the need for feasibility and impact assessments of the lease area in the very near future.
In addition to offshore wind, wave energy research along the California coastline continues to grow. U.S. marine energy resources are significant and geographically diverse. The national combined technical resource (wave, tidal, current) of at least 2,300 Terawatt Hours (TWh)/year is equivalent to two-thirds of total U.S. electricity generated. The U.S. wave energy resource is large (1,400 TWh/year), and the west coast is particularly attractive for wave energy because the resource is substantial (240 TWh/year). Commercialization of technologies to safely capture these renewable resources at scale will support localized economic development opportunities, dramatically reduce harmful emissions from nonrenewable energy generation, and create high-value employment for waterfront communities.
Cal Poly’s Tech Park expansion and Cal Poly Pier modernization efforts represent shovel-ready, permitted, master-planned facilities that are ready to assist with both offshore wind and wave energy research and implementation leveraging university faculty and student research and expertise. Investment in these two university facilities is a prime accelerator for economic growth in the region and Cal Poly is poised to be an early and significant resource for private and public sector development in these emerging sectors.
To date, Cal Poly’s Tech Park has created over 750 high-tech jobs supporting over 50 companies and creating $60 million in economic impact to the region. The Phase I Tech Park completed in 2010 has provided an 11x return on investment. The Cal Poly Tech Park is a facility dedicated to developing the intersection between student/faculty research and development and corporate workforce and innovation needs. Upcoming expansion will add an additional 100,000-120,000 square feet across multiple buildings in direct support of emerging high-growth, high-wage industries on the Central Coast such as Ag-Tech, Alternative Energy, Aerospace, and Biotechnology. The expanded Tech Park is expected to result in over 900 additional jobs, $150 million in annual economic impact, and continue the progress made by Cal Poly over the past decade in the innovation-entrepreneurship ecosystem that is an integral part of a broader regional economic development strategy. Combined with other regional investments, it is anticipated that the Tech Park expansion project will support $1 billion in planned private sector investment in the clean tech sector over the next decade. See more at https://cei.calpoly.edu/technology-park
In conjunction with the Tech Park expansion, Cal Poly’s Pier in Port San Luis Harbor District is poised to play a key role in the expanding Blue Economy supporting offshore wind, marine energy, aquaculture, desalination, and systems and subsystem development/demonstration projects. The pier provides an ideal location for Blue Economy developers that require a commercial grade platform to access the marine environment.
Critical information technology, water, and electrical utility upgrades are planned to expand the ability of the pier to capitalize on upcoming development opportunities. The Cal Poly Pier has already played a key role in marine research and testing highlighted by the following select projects: Subsea Electronics and Instrumentation Testing; Sonar-based Underwater Leak Detection Testing; Scale-model Wave Energy / Upwelling Systems Testing; Induced Upwelling Testing; Infrared Camera Testing; Bioluminescence Detection; Loading and Unloading of Seismic Survey Equipment; Radar Altimeter Testing; Polymer Film Degradation Testing; Testing/Deployment of Underwater Camera Apparatus.
Cal Poly’s Center for Coastal Marine Sciences has over 40 faculty and staff, 150 undergrad students, and 20 graduate students engaged to strengthen future relationships with other research institutions, community organizations, industries, and policymakers to supply sound scientific solutions to issues in marine science along the California Central Coast and beyond.
The continued investment in marine research facilities at the Cal Poly Pier, leveraging student/faculty expertise at Cal Poly, and the available proximity to these resources for corporate/nonprofit interests through the on-campus Tech Park supply a robust pathway for enabling high-tech economic development.
Cal Poly is centrally located to the Morro Bay offshore wind lease area and industrial re-use opportunities represented in the Diablo Canyon and Morro Bay Power Plants. In conjunction with its Pier and expanding Tech Park, Cal Poly supplies existing R&D capital and expertise for entities looking to capitalize on the growing Blue Economy opportunities on the Central Coast. These facilities lie within a 13-mile radius of each other:
Cal Poly's faculty and student knowledge in applied solutions through our Learn by Doing philosophy gives corporate and nonprofit interests a way to engage their future workforce, benefit from innovative university research, strengthen higher education at Cal Poly, spur economic growth in the region, and increase sustainability of our power generation, food supply, and water usage.
Continued investment in Cal Poly’s Tech Park and Pier will drive economic growth and high-tech solutions to challenges that the ocean can help us solve locally and globally.
Inquires:
Jim Dunning, Associate Vice President, Corporate Engagement & Innovation
Division Research, Economic Development, and Graduate Education Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
(805) 756-5551 - jdunning@calpoly.edu
Acknowledgement Statement: This project was made possible by the work of the units in the Cal Poly Division of Research, Economic Development & Graduate Education to support student research, Learn-by-Doing, the Teacher-Scholar Model, proposal submission, award negotiation, compliance review, and post-award management. See more at research.calpoly.edu.